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Accuser is last witness in Jackson case
The final witness in the Michael Jackson trial was the accuser himself, shown on a videotape telling detectives for the first time of his allegations that the pop star molested him.
When the lights came up afterward, the prosecution rested its rebuttal case and the defense attorney surprisingly did the same, marking a dramatic close of testimony. Closing arguments could begin as early as Wednesday. Prosecutors played the tape for jurors Friday in a bid to show that the boy's story has been consistent ever since he went to authorities with the allegations nearly two years ago. Slumped in his chair and dressed in denim shorts and a blue shirt, the cancer survivor haltingly and quietly spoke to investigators. "He put his hands in my pants. He started masturbating me," the boy said, occasionally fumbling with a button on his shirt. "I told him I didn't want to do that and he kept on doing it. I told him no." The tape offered little that the boy hadn't already testified to on the stand, but there was a clear impact. The courtroom was hushed and at the end jurors were solemn, looking downward. Jackson had no comment as he left. The decision to not present a defense rebuttal means closing arguments could begin as early as Wednesday. Judge Rodney S. Melville told jurors they could take the day off Tuesday when attorneys discuss jury instructions. Jackson, 46, is charged with molesting the then-13-year-old boy in February or March 2003, giving him wine and conspiring to hold his family captive to get them to rebut a documentary in which Jackson said he let children into his bed but it was non-sexual. The defense sought to portray the young accuser and his mother as gold-digging schemers who made up the allegations. Prosecutors played the taped interview with the accuser after Melville instructed jurors "only to observe the demeanor, manner and attitude of the witness" and said that the boy's "statements are not to be considered for the truth of the matter stated." The interview was conducted in the Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Department's Sexual Abuse Assault Response Team cottage in Santa Barbara on July 6, 2003. Investigators made small-talk as they tried to build rapport before pressing him to be forthcoming. "You are not in danger by being here with us," Sgt. Steve Robel told him. "... We are going to try our best to make a case, a criminal case, but we need your cooperation." The detectives questioned him about his ideas of right and wrong, and the boy said things that were wrong included staying up too late, fighting, breaking things and killing someone. With his head down and frequently pausing, the boy described the alleged molestation in a low voice. The account was similar to the one he gave on the witness stand. Robel said at one point, "I don't care who Michael Jackson is. Michael Jackson has done wrong to you and your mother and his friends." At the end, Robel assured the boy he was doing the right thing. "I'm very proud of you," he said at the end. "What he has done to you. He's the bad person, not you. You and your mother and brother and sister are the good people." ___ AP Special Correspondent Linda Deutsch contributed to this report.
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